It Was Never Me
by Evangeline Dixon
Summary: Otis captures his childhood sweetheart and still has some grudges to carry out. Otis/OC OtisxOc
1. Chapter 1

The rain began to lash down, more than lash, it throttled Annie. Full force and mean. It strangled her.

Annie ran through the swampy heat and curtains of rain, her feet sliding in the water logged mud. She whimpered quietly, her head flickering from one side to the other as she gazed intently into the darkness, each tree seemed to morph into the tall figure of the man she was running away from.

The hard thing was that Annie was not fit, she was thin, but did zero cardiovascular activity and now the adrenalin that was powering her frantic escape was beginning to run out. She wheezed feverishly and turned around, her long, brown hair clung to her forehead and the back of her neck in wet and sweaty strands.

There was no one. Just her and the aching moan of the wind in the trees and the thrash of the downpour on the forest's branches. Annie's arms were already lacerated from the braches since out here in the brush hardly any of them hosted leaves; though her arm was covered in cuts, the constant rain washed away the stream of blood. Annie hardly noticed, the last days had left her impervious to a few small scratches.

"Ooooweeee!" The call came from the darkness and turned the young girl's blood to ice. Somewhere in the darkness, he was coming for her.

Fresh tears ran down Annie's face as she stumbled backward, struggling to find grip in the mud.

"Fuck," She cried as she began to run again.

Annie knew now that he knew. He knew where she was and where she was going.

Suddenly the forest began to fade away, the trees becoming more sparse as she tore through them and before she knew it she was in the open.

Now, what she saw then unnerved her but the horror she had seen in the last week meant that she didn't cry, she didn't yell but she did stop and her mouth did hang open like it was only working on a rusty screw.

Before her where at least five hundred graves, crudely marked with make-shift crosses. For a mere moment she wondered why the Firefly's would bother with burying their victims, let alone marking their final resting places.

She trembled. And then she heard footsteps and whistling and she stared at the treeline, waiting for the tall, pale man to advance on her again.

As she watched him come into view, long, lank hair hanging greasily over his shoulder, rivets of water dropping lazily off the end. Annie whimpered, trembling backwards as she saw him grin, his crooked teeth sparkling at her.

He was closing the distance.

Annie couldn't move far, she was simply inching backwards into the graveyard.

Abruptly the ground connected with her, flipping backwards over some foreign object, Annie hit the floor. Otis was too close.

"Gotcha lil rabbit," Otis hissed at her, reaching forward to hoist her home.

Annie scrambled away, kicking at his hand and grasping for the thing she had fallen over.

She grabbed it. Felt its cold and round edge, slid her hand down the wooden handle and swung.

"I ain't yer fuckin' rabbit!" Annie yelled as the metal side of the shovel connected with Otis' head.

The man fell down on top of her.

Out like a lamp.


	2. Chapter 2

_past_

Otis B. Driftwood sat outside a nearby school. Seventeen now, Otis didn't attend, but sometimes he liked to see what he was missing.

His hair was a white blonde and messy, but he kept it cut and stayed well in the shade to prevent burns. People called him vampire boy. People threw rocks.

Otis watched a group of cheerleaders and some preppy looking kids walk by, carbon copies of each other, kids had been filing out for about half an hour now but he had been waiting for _them_.

"Let's go get high in the park," One of the blondes giggled. Not noticing Otis as he followed behind them, serrupticiously hugging the tree line.

He didn't have the plans to kill then yet. No, it would take a while for Otis' perversions to grow from killing people who deserved it and to killing full stop. He liked to draw, he did charcoal sketchings of the girls sat on the boys with their grubby hands sliding up their short skirts. Then he'd angrily jack off clutching them, pissed at the things he'd never have and then...then he'd burn them and toss the ash out his window like snowflakes.

Today, Otis wasn't the first in the Central Park though and neither was the prep team. Instead, sat cross legged on the grass was a girl the kids recognised from school. She threw her head back and she took a swig from the bottle she was holding, long dark hair falling backwards.

Otis froze, watching from the trees as she screwed her face up and grimaced. She was beautiful, Otis' heart was pounding and his seventeen year old hormones were kicking in. All he wanted to do was slit her open from her stomach to jaw bone and see if she was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside but he guessed she probably wouldn't like that, so he didn't.

"Well fuck me," A blonde cheerleader said, "If it ain't Annie get your gun,"

"Fuck off Lisa," The girl, Annie, seemed used to it. A daily occurrence almost.

"Why aren't you at home? Helping your mama?" Lisa iched closer, backed up by her burly sidekicks, Dumb and Dumber.

Annie stood up, inches below the Cheerleaders in platform heels, but still tall.

"She's workin'," She growled lowly.

"The streets?"

Annie leapt for the blonde Lisa who backed up, giggling, letting Dumb take her place as a bodyguard.

"And what about your Daddy?" Lisa cackled and even Dumb gasped at the low blow.

"Lisa," he said under his breath.

But he shouldn't have taken his eyes off of her because in a flash Annie had Lisa's blonde ponytail in a falcon's grip and was yanking her towards the ground. Dumber dived in, taking Dumb's place and hoisting Annie away from the terrified girl. He pinned her by her throat to a tree. Annie gasped for breath. The bottle of whisky dropping from her hand and smashing.

"You fucking bitch," Dumbed laughed, showing shark's teeth as he squeezed tighter.

Annie flailed her legs.

"Yer gonna leave her alone, or I'll gut all four of you," Otis seethed, emerging from the dense wood. The point of the sharpener from his charcoal set was clasped behind his back.

"Eww," Lisa hissed under her breath at the sight of Otis, clinging on to Dumb.

Dumber however, dropped the gasping Annie and began to advance on Otis.

"Oh really? You fucking peeping Tom hiding in the fucking bushes, you sick, sick, fuck,"

Suddenly Dumber hurtled towards Otis, aiming to tackle him to the ground but Otis was quicker and slashed out with the small knife, cutting a long red line against the mans knuckles.

Dumber hissed and looked down at the blood running from his hand, his face turning almost the same colour with rage. He whistled for Dumb to assist him and as Dumb untangled himself from Lisa, Dumber threw himself at Otis again.

With two huge guys on him, Otis went down easily, the knife spinning away.

"Hey!" Annie cried out as they threw punches at Otis, breaking a nose, bruising an eye, bloodying a face.

"How'd you like it fucker?!" They taunted as they yanked down the thin boy's jeans, "Peeping fucking Tom,"

They laughed, giving up after their knuckles were thoroughly bloodied and Otis had assumed the foetal position, his hands covering his face.

"Let's go baby," Dumb said to Lisa and Dumber wrapped his arm around another smirking broad. He pointed at Annie.

"See you tomorrow Annie get your gun," They strolled away smiling.

Annie had embarrassed tears in her eyes and it took her a while to approach the shaking, pale thing huddled on the ground.

She picked up the sharpener on the floor and went to hand it to him.

"Thank-" suddenly Otis whirled round, his teeth and face smeared with blood, enough to make anyone jump. He grabbed the wrist holding his sharpener and pulled it towards him, along with the girl attached to it. Annie fell forward with a gasp, inches away from Otis' pallid face. She released the sharpener into Otis' hand and he released her.

She sat back on her haunches and waited as Otis wiped his mouth and nose, smearing blood further across his face.

"C'mon," she said standing, "I'll take you to my place, you can get cleaned up,"

Annie offered her hand but Otis clambered up himself, hauling up his jeans. Annie thought she saw a blush in his cheeks but that might have just been the smeared blood.

"I don't need no fuckin' help," Otis grumbled as she led the way back home.


	3. Chapter 3

_past _

Otis waited until she had finished screaming until he pulled out of her. He rolled back onto the bed and lit up a cigarette, a smile on his face, and blew smoke rings into the air high above his head until they reached the ceiling and dissipated.

Suddenly he felt warm hands wrap around his chest, the feel of a nose against his am and hair tickle his chin and his heart beat fast again.

"I think that was the best orgasm I've ever had," The girl breathed gently against his arm.

"You're damn fuckin' right it was," Otis smirked at her. Though he was shaking and this was his first time with a girl.

Annie propped herself up on one shoulder, running her hand down his toned, pale arms.

"So whatcha wanna do now darlin'?" She asked.

Otis looked at her for a second before blowing smoke into her pretty face. She slapped him lightly.

Lightly. She knew how his temper flared.

It made for real great sex.

"Hey!" She jumped suddenly before untangling from him and lowering herself down the side of her bed.

Annie's house was a small little farmhouse, white paint and white walls and white bedding. She lived on the outskirts of town, way away from Otis and his empty home. Although she was still enrolled in school, she'd taken to skipping class to spend the day with the boy she'd fallen in love with. Her mother being away all day meant that they could go back to hers and roll around in the sheets until noon where she would turf the boy out with a kiss and promises that one day they would up and leave this place together.

Annie rose her head and abdomen and flipped back round to Otis. In her hand was a make-up bag.

"You wanna play?" She drawled.

"Fuck you!" Otis yelled, baring his teeth at her.

Annie laughed, despite the fact Otis was angry.

"I ain't talkin' red lipstick and pantyhose boy," Annie took out some white paint and other dramatic make-up, "I do theatrical make-up. I can make you look real scary,"

Annie swung a leg round Otis' slim figure so she was straddling his chest. She was warm. And wet.

Otis was smiling now, but he wouldn't look at the only girl who had shown him affection his entire life. Annie put her head next to his ear, hot breath and sliding hands.

"A real dead man walkin'," She whispered long and slow, her hands reaching up and around his neck.

"Fuckin' fine," He growled, gripping her hips with a bruising pressure that made her gasp, "I'm gon regret holdin' on to you ain't I, mama?"

* * *

"You know this ain't half bad mama," Otis grinned at his pale skin. Bright white with the make-up. There was a slim black cross on his forehead and his cheeks were carved out with black; thin,black lines made his lips look chiseled. His smile was grisly.

Annie leaned back, she'd managed to put a pair of blue underwear on now and was smoking, her nipples having been circled in red paint by Otis.

"Let's go clean up," Annie strolled out the room and showed Otis the bathroom but instead he shook his head.

"Nah I think I'll keep it,"

Annie shrugged, swinging on a nightgown and beckoning the boy before she strolled downstairs, looking for something to eat.

Otis sat at her table, a dead man walking, watching Annie as she cut up strawberries in a bowl. He blushed as he watched her hands turn red with juice and the way it stained her thin white top and the way she licked it clean from her long fingers, but she couldn't tell he was blushing through the thick white make-up.

"You want a lick?" She held out a sweetened hand and wiggled her fingers.

Otis shook his head feverishly, "Fuck that shit," despite the fact he wanted to, he wanted to taste her

Suddenly, Annie froze, she heard a car as it pulled into the driveway. Otis watched as her head moved from the clock on the wall, to his face, to his make-up, to her strawberries and back to the door.

"Holy mis moly, it's my momma," Annie yelped, flicking her wrists and simply staring at Otis.

"Fuck! Shit! Fuck!" He leapt from his chair with a clatter and grasped a tea-towel from the side, swiping at the make-up Annie had so lovingly applied. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

"Otis calm down," Annie asked, smirking a little now.

He grabbed her by the shoulders.

"No, I won't fuckin' calm down," He growled loudly before going back to rubbing his face.

At age seventeen, meeting his girlfriend's mother was still terrifying.

Suddenly there was a jangle of keys in the side door, the lace curtain covering it shook lightly. Annie clutched Otis' arm and stopped him from rubbing at his face, slowly she brought his arm down and he dropped the towel; jerkily, tentatively, his arm went around her waist.

As Annie's mother entered the room, the sound in Otis' head went to mute. The woman was large, soft but with an angry face that screwed up even more when she saw what was hanging on to her daughter. The mother froze and so did he. Grey streaks streaked his pale face and his pale face showed illness and red eyes and snow white hair that didn't match her daughters tan skin or long brown locks but they were both tall and thin and fit together like spoons but that didn't seem to matter to Annie's mother.

Annie moved forward, leaving Otis behind, her hands outstretched in apology.

Then the sound came back in.

"You don't have to tell me nothin' 'bout this boy Annie-Mai! I know 'bout this boy and this boy ain't nothin' but a fuckin' redneck and I won't have you havin' anythin' to do with him!" She turned to Otis, "Now you, you pale, no good, hillbilly, fuckin' freak, get the fuck out my house!"

Annie yelped her half stilted protests but was over won by her mother.

"I think you betta leave..." She said, her head bowed so she didn't have to deal with the clown in front of her.

Otis crept forward towards the door but then turned, watching.

"You know what? Fuck you, you mother fucking bitch!" Annie and her mother stared at the profanities, expecting a clean break. "You know I fucked your little girl in your fucking bed and fuck me, it was good! She's so fucking nice and tight and Jesus Christ she is one filthy bitch!" Otis was being pushed and shoved out the door now.

Suddenly it was the porch and the door slammed shut and that was the last he saw of Annie-Mai Gunner.

Or at least that was what he thought.


	4. Chapter 4

In all seriousness, although Bill Moseley was 52 at time of filming I think he looks so much younger! So for fanfiction purposes and because I've messed up his age in the story, he's now 27 hahaha forgive me.

_Past_

Ten years after her romance with that young man she had loved, Annie-Mai Gunner stood by the side of the dirt road. Her tiny blue slip was crumpled and there were bruises on her arms and layered across her chest. It had been a bad night of work.

Annie didn't have a car and her life had somewhat dissolved after high school, petering out into a jobless, destination-less, bankrupt, nothing. So now, as she walked for two miles away from the busy lights of the town, where she had spent from early evening till two in the morning, in search of some form of transport, she didn't care about the dangers of hitch hiking. She didn't care about anything because she was sore and her dress was dirty and her eyes were ringed with dark bags suggesting sleepless nights.

She carried on walking, wobbling on heels that were too high and wishing she had a warm place to sleep. Annie was tired and alone and she felt cold despite the humid,desert heat. So when a pick up truck slowed down beside her and a man built like a house strode out and opened the door for her, she got in.

"Hi, thanks" She said tiredly, her eyes sore and pink and her eyelids heavy, "I'm Annie,"

The man drove on for a good ten minutes before he decided to talk, "RJ," he murmured his name.

"You're out pretty late RJ, been busy tonight?" Annie mumbled answers and questions robotically.

"Not too bad, just had to go'n pick up someone with a flat tire. It's always a flat tire," The car moved easily over the road but suddenly began hitting pumps and the journey began to get progressively more rocky.

"Where's the car...?" Annie asked, turning back to look at the rear end of the pick-up and then raising an eyebrow.

RJ was silent. Bobbing up and down with the uneasiness of the dirt track he was driving on. "...Just dropped it off."

Annie was satisfied with that answer and sank back into her seat, her head lolling towards RJ so she could carry on the conversation.

"You're out damn late too,"

"Oh you know," Annie nodded, pulling at the hem of her slip when she noticed it had risen to her thighs, "Work..."

RJ left it at that and they drove in silence for a while, taking a break from the stilted conversation.

"Where you headed?" RJ suddenly asked and Annie thought it strange he hadn't asked sooner, as if he already knew where she was going.

Annie was tucked into the moth eaten seat, her head resting on the window, "Wherever you want to take me,"  
He didn't reply and in another ten minutes, she was asleep.

As the car finally reached its destination the sun was just beginning to climb over the hills, illuminating the acres and acres of sand, giving it a warm white glow.

The ramshackle farm house was silent but as soon as the truck rolled in the dogs began to bark loudly and before long two women came out to great the approaching vehicle.

"My baby's back," The woman in the tightfitting corset clapped happily as she ran out to great him, the tops of her breasts jiggling like warm jello.

Slightly behind her ran the other girl, her blonde hair bouncing just as much as her mother's constrained breasts.

"She's mine," RJ growled protectively as he removed himself from the car.

The Firefly family stared excitedly at the body in the car, wrists and ankles now tied together but still sleeping soundly.

"No she's mine! We never get no girls in the house no more," Baby shrieked, bobbing up and down on the spot and looking expectantly at her mother.

Mother Firefly rose an eyebrow and turned back to RJ. "It's true RJ, darlin', and you did get to finish the last bunch we had," the buxom lady beside him laid a hand on her son's giant forearm, her son frowned, vexed, and folded his arms.

"Does that mean she's mine momma?" Baby trilled and Mother Firefly nodded, beginning to coax her hurt son inside.

"YEEHAH!" Baby screeched, latching on to Annie's hair and hauling her from the car.

Annie opened her big green eyes as her body hit the ground hard. She stared around at the three faces that loomed, in a semi-circle, around her head.

"Oh Angel Baby, she's a pretty one," Mother Firefly stated and Baby began to pout.

Annie pulled at her hands and found them bound, she found herself flailing like a caught fish and then she began to scream against her gag, muffled brutality that dissipated into the thick black of the night.

"No! That's not fair Ma, that's not fair!" Baby cried, punctuating her frustration with a swift kick to Annie's ribs. Annie gasped as she curled in from the pain.

"You know how it is Angel," Mother Firefly consoled but Baby was livid.

"That fuckin' shit stain gets first pick of everythan' pretty!"

"You can get anythin' pretty you want Baby girl, you and I both know your brother needs a bit of help, though I cannot see why for the life of me," Mother Firefly petted her daughters blonde locks.

Baby stamped her tiny feet, "Fuck that motherfucker!" Baby's voice had reached a pitch that only dogs could hear.

"Quit yer fuckin' whinin' Baby," A figure moved from the house, ducking under the small doorframe. He strolled over, cowboy hat pulled low over his head and flannel shirt blowing slightly in the soft breeze, his hair was practically luminous with the morning light from the sun. Otis came to a stop over Annie whose screams and thrashes had turned to whimpers after the winding kick.

You see, Annie had changed a lot in ten years. She'd developed breasts late but now they were soft and maternally big, her hips had widened and her hair was shoulder length. She had left the boyish figure behind and used darker eyeshadows and red lips to pull in clients but her eyes were still big and green and piercing.

Otis on the other hand, had become taller, his hair longer and that was largely it. Though the blue of his eyes still rivaled the green of hers.

Annie stopped screaming and simply stared as Otis approached her, she remembered him. How could she forget?

He looked at her.

"Well...? What do you think...?" Mother Firefly asked eagerly, her arm now wrapped around the pouting Baby's waist.

Otis stared hard at the thing on the floor, trussed up like a cocoon. He leant down and grabbed a handful of her hair with an abrupt flick of his wrist he drove her head down on the bonnet of the car, knocking her out cold.

Then, he began dragging the unconscious girl back towards the house, he looked back once.

"She's mine,"


	5. Chapter 5

_Past_

Annie woke up strapped to a large, wooden chair but her legs were still free to kick so when she woke up from unconsciousness, her mad bid for freedom had her pushing off from the floor and sending the chair flying backwards. She landed with a crack on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, she was sure that some of the wood had split. Annie moaned at the bruising radiating from her back, the fall knocking her into a swirling delirium.

Her vision spun as she looked up at the ceiling, a mobile of mottled bones dangling precariously directly above her, skulls loomed down at her and she suspected they were real. They were intertwined with antlers, broken glass and teeth.

"Help..." She tried weakly but her voice betrayed her and it came out strangled.

Again she stared around the room, half in disbelief, half to try and understand where she was; the windows were covered with paper and when the sun shone through the whole room turned red from the markers that had been used to draw on them. She had been placed next to a single bed and she could see that there was only a blanket and a couple of orange pillows on the stained mattress, suddenly she felt sorry for whoever had to sleep there.

"Help!" She attempted a shout but since she hadn't had any semblance of liquid in about ten hours it came out in two broken pieces 'huh' and 'elp'.

"Will you shut your fuckin' mouth already?!" Otis stormed into the room, pulling back a curtain that separated them, "I am tryin' to work!"

"Otis!" Annie yelled, her eyes welling up and spilling down her cheeks, she laughed manically "Oh Otis!"

Otis froze, furrowing his brow as he took a step back. He stared at the girl in the chair, her slip was now covered in desert sand and ripped in places from him dragging her inside. Otis was rarely stuck for words but now he simply stared at her, snarling his top lip as she beamed at him.

"Seemed to have got yourself in quite a pickle there mama," Otis stepped over her fallen chair, straddling her body as he crouched down, his lank, blonde hair brushed her cheeks.

Otis reached back into his pocket, pulling out a long kitchen knife and holding it to her cheek. He was confused, but instead decided to take control and have a little fun.

Annie opened her mouth as if to say something but without warning Otis slashed lightly at her cheek. Annie yelped in shock more than pain as warm blood trickled from the cut.

"Driftwood what the fuck?!" Annie cried out, whimpering in fear and turning her face away.

Annie had always known about Otis. After all, the first time they met he had threatened to 'gut' four strangers as he drew them from the bushes...but she never guessed that he would hurt her. Otis was insane, and if his life went as haywire as hers did after highschool, she had almost expected this psychosis. But Annie had loved him and from their days and nights together Annie could have sworn Otis loved her too.

Otis audibly growled and hauled the chair upright, it rocked gently and then stopped and so did Annie. Shaking and staring.

Otis bent down and put his ghostly face inches away from Annie's, he gripped the sides of the wooden chair so there was nothing for her to do but look directly at him.

"Alright lil mama, I've had enough of your mother fucking games," Otis barked, "So you tell me now and you tell me plain, none of this beatin' 'round the bush shit, how the fuck do you know my name?"

There was a creeping worry that was in the back of his mind. If this stranger knew his name, maybe others knew his name and if the people she knew noticed she was missing...then the police could be here within a couple of hours. She didn't know but Otis had a gun in his back pocket and he was ready to whip it out and bury a bullet in her skull.

"...It's me...it's Annie...Annie-Mae..."

"I don't know no fuckin' 'Annie, Annie-Mae' bitch,"

Annie could hear screaming, hideous screaming from the floor below. Otis pulled the gun and kept it loosely by his side.

"No!" Annie jumped in the chair, rocking it slightly, "You do, you do! We were seventeen and I loved you! Please Otis, it's me, it's Annie!"

Of course Otis remembered THAT Annie-Mae but this woman in front of him looked like a whore, breasts and hips and make-up and his Annie-Mae had looked like a child and felt brittle under his bruising grip. Sure, Otis liked this Annie-Mae more, she was hot. But that didn't mean she was the girl that he knew.

Otis contemplated killing her and erasing the problem all at once but if it was Annie-Mae Gunner from years ago? Then, man, would he have fun with her...

Otis kept the gun in one hand and, using the knife that was in his other, cut Annie's ties. Slowly, now free, she exercised her wrists in small circles, rubbing them calmly while Otis took a seat on the bed.

"Strip," He beckoned with the gun.

"Wh-what?" Annie stumbled over the words, her face blossoming red.

"If you are Annie-Mae Gunner, take off your fuckin' clothes,"

"But-"

"Come the fuck on mama, I ain't got all day." Otis extended the hand holding the gun and motioned for her to hurry up.

Standing up, Annie spared a glance at the door.

"Door's locked mama and if you so much as fuckin' think about makin' a run for it, I'll cut your limbs off and you can watch me make a puppet show from 'em,"

Annie nodded purposefully and closed her eyes. Otis sat back in his seat.

She was shaking as she moved her hand jerkily under one strap on her silken slip, it fell over her shoulder and dropped to her arm. She repeated the action with the other strap, staring at the ground while Otis moved forward in his seat, the gun still trained on her. Otis was breathing hard, his chest heaving rapidly.

As the second strap was lowered the slip fell down and caught on Annie's hips, she shimmied, terrified; the dress collapsing in a heap at her feet.

Otis whistled, "No bra," He observed.

Annie shook her head and continued staring at the ground so she wouldn't have to look at the prominent erection Otis had.

Annie had broad shoulders, large, full breasts, wide hips, a flat stomach and a pair of red underpants, she wasn't skinny or model-esque but she was soft and womanly and from the look of Otis' dilated pupils, he approved. The cold of the room made her nipples shrivel up and her breasts look significantly fuller.

Otis was now stroking himself over his jeans now as he watched Annie, he groaned.

"Turn around," He demanded. She did, twirling on her toe so she was facing away from him now, looking directly at his insane scrawlings decorating the wall.

"Well fuck me," Otis breathed.

Annie-Mae Gunner from his childhood had a birthmark on her lower back that looked like a bird. A brown, splodge of a bird but a bird all the same. Now, staring at each, individual vertebrae in her spine, he saw very clearly the spilled ink bird on her back.

Otis stood and marched up to her, the nose of the gun was cold and sharp as he buried it in the small of her back. He dropped the knife and instead wound his fist in her hair, yanking her head back and pulling her to his chest. Then, with a well executed shove, he threw her on the bed. Following her to it as Annie cowered,naked, in the corner.  
With the gun pushed between her breasts she allowed Otis to take both her arms and fit her wrists into manacles with a metal click, the manacles were attached to wall and Annie swallowed against the lump in her throat.

"Annie-Mae, Annie-Mae," Otis drawled.

"Don't play this with me, Otis" Annie sighed, sweat stippling her forehead in fear.

Otis pulled on her hair again and as she hissed in pain he leant forward and pressed his mouth against hers, hard. Licking at her clenched teeth and trailing the kiss way up to her cheek.

He grinned a crooked smile at her and moved the gun to her mouth, forcefully parting her lips and jamming the barrel of the gun down her throat. She gagged, her eyes widening and black mascara staining her cheeks. Annie stared pleadingly up at the man degrading her.

"Annie-Mae, Annie-Mae, have I got some plans for you..."


	6. Chapter 6

_Past_

The world began to impose on Annie, dropping hints of rescue with the sounds of doors and windows opening before snatching it away again when Otis stormed through the door. She was left dangling on to the bed for hours upon hours, listening to the screams radiating from the house, the sound of Otis cutting into flesh as he 'worked', his constant profanities and Baby's incessant laugh; with only an itchy blanket covering her nakedness. One day, while walking past her prone body, looking for water to clean up with, Otis palmed her face, covering it with coppery blood, laughing as she struggled under him. Annie had tried to yell out against Otis but he had gagged her by now, preventing her from reminding him of her name.

Even now, as she stared at the colorful artwork of Otis' room, her face was covered with dried blood. She could feel it cracking as if peeled in the heat.

Overall, Otis didn't do much to her, he taunted her and humiliated her but he hadn't harmed her...yet. Though from the vitriolic rants she had been forced to listen to, she was sure that he had something big planned. Annie had tried to reason with him but the gag left her vowel-less and dumb. He had presented her with his hybrid creations and she had let tears fill her eyes but said nothing and it sickened her that she thought it was artistic. When they were younger, he had shown her his ideas and his drawings and she had laughed and then looked at him sadly because she knew. It was impossible not to. And Annie still loved him.

A girl that Otis called Baby had entered the room a couple times and traded insults with him before leaving, she had looked at Annie with a gleaming pleasure as asked Otis when it was her time to play. Occasionally Mother Firefly came and left some water by her bed or came to cleanup the room. Annie had begged for the water and Otis managed to choke her with it until she spluttered and coughed it back up.

Now, Annie was suffering from the metal rubbing on her wrists and the fact he arms where dangerously close to being pulled out their sockets, she moaned in pain at each tiny movement.

"Mmodis," She groaned, "Mmmohdiss!"

Otis was downstairs, kicking the shit out of the person Baby had pulled in with the promise of a good night. He was frustrated, angry at himself for not cutting Annie's throat the second she told him her name. He wanted to kill her and ruin her and cut her into tiny pieces for rejecting him and ruining him and his life and showing him he wasn't good enough for her or the rest of the world. She had made him understand, break away from conformity and realize if he wasn't good enough for the rest of the world then why should he act like the rest of the world was good enough for him?

"FUCK! YOU! MOTHER! FUCKER!" Otis screamed, ramming his boot into the man's face again and again, feeling the structure break and give away until he was kicking mush. Otis gave a few more stamps on the shattered skull to the sound of Baby's applause before shaking himself off and returning upstairs.

Otis slammed the door so hard it re-opened and he had to shut it again. Annie, asleep on the bed, woke up with a jolting start, crying out against the pull she put on her arms.

"Mmmohdis, ewv aut oo etee oh," Annie tried as soon as she saw the Otis' deathly blue stare glaring at her but the length of materiel jammed down her throat wasn't helping.

"Fuck it," In one swift movement, he ripped the gag from her mouth.

Annie coughed as the balled up materiel was pulled from her throat, a long line of spittle glimmered in the dim light, hanging from her lip.

"What are you doin' Otis?" Annie whispered hoarsely, trying not to sound accusing.

"What?! Messy up your day?" The ghostly figure growled, wiping his bloody hands on his jeans, clearly showing Annie that he meant business.

"You know me!" Annie protested loudly, her southern accent making everything seem much more emotional, "You loved-"  
The back of Otis' hand connected with Annie's face and sent her head ricocheting to the right.

"You shut the fuck up and get your shit off that bed," Otis demanded, turning from her and rifling through his desk. Scattering paper everywhere he found the small pistol he was looking for.

"I can't," Annie whimpered, tasting blood in her mouth; rattling her manacles and bucking her body upwards insistently as Otis approached with the weapon.

The blanket fell down and revealed Annie's breasts. Otis sat down beside her on the bed, grinning.

"Yeah that's right...like a stuck lil pig, ain'tcha mama?" Otis made a big show of dropping the glock, knowing Annie couldn't stop him with her hands bound, it clattered loudly to the floor.

"Otis..." Annie tried as she felt his hand move under the covers and begin to stroke her soft leg, gripping the top of her thigh.

"Shut your mouth," Otis hissed as his hand crawled up her stomach and clutched a breast.

The memories rolled back as he squeezed her, pawing at a nipple with the calloused pads of his thumb and finger. Annie's head rolled back

They were home and it was ten years ago, the sheets were warm and both their bodies were sticky with persperation. And she loved him. She loved him so much. And his hands, although bigger, were the same; still calloused and rough on her soft skin.

Otis drew back when she moaned and her eyes rolled back into her , he pulled her head back and she yelled out as her shoulders were strained. Otis thrust his other hand between her legs, easily pushing two long fingers inside her, making her yelp and whimper like a trapped cat. Annie felt him push down on her, his lips slamming into hers and gnawing her bottom lip until hot blood burst into her mouth, she clenched against him and tried to lean into the hold he had on her hair.

"You like this you fuckin' slut?" He asked, laughing as she cried out when he pushed his fingers in up to the knuckle.

Otis pulled out, ripping off his plaid shirt so he was just in his frayed grey vest. Annie whimpered as he leaned foreward and, taking a key from his jeans, unlocked her manacles. Annie exhaled in relief, and quickly tucked her arms into herself, her eyes closing from the ecstasy of her shoulders relaxing.

Suddenly, she heard a gun click and re-opened her eyes, seeing Otis had reclaimed his weapon and was pointing it at her. Annie continued watching his muscles strain under his translucent skin, his blue veins creeping up his pallid arms as he unzipped his trousers and freed himself, crawling under her blanket, the other hand still clutching the gun.

"You want me to fuck you mama?" He asked as he parted her legs, stroking down her stomach languidly.

Abruptly he snarled at her, his hand clutched her throat and the gun was at her head. Annie tensed, her eyes widened and her hands flicked to his arms in an attempt to stop him putting any more pressure on her neck.

"Tell me I'm your devil," He said lowly, calmly, into her ear, "Tell me to make you my filthy fuckin' whore,"

Annie looked into his blue eyes, her face emotionless. She took her hands from his arms and placed them on his waist, he flinched.

"You're my devil, and I want to be the devil's whore,"

"Damn fuckin' straight mama," Slowly, inch by inch, he sank into her, "Now gimme some sugar...and make it sweet,"

He kissed her, tracing her teeth with his tongue. Otis moved his mouth to her neck, sucking on the skin. Purposefully he pressed on her shoulder, drawing out of her as he pushed her down. Now, Annie was facing the wall with Otis beside her in the bed, breathing heavily on the back of her neck as he re-entered.

"Fuck mama," He hissed, picking up speed as he slammed into her hips.

Annie could feel herself bruising, breathing rapidly and bucking her hips to meet him.

Suddenly the door opened and Baby entered. Otis didn't stop.

"Baby, get the fuck outta here!"

"Why?!" Baby retaliated, devested she should be prevented from entering. However, the cover on the bed was thin and barely covered the both of them, let alone the creaking of bed springs or the rocking wood.

Otis had his hand covering Annie's mouth, pulling hard against her so it was almost a gag, he had long since abandoned the gun.

"Fuckin' get out!" Otis roared.

"Fuck you!" Baby whined, though afterwards she giggled. Baby closed the door but Annie could still hear her laughing.

"Fuck you!" Otis replied loudly, suddenly straining on the 'you' as he reached his climax, his fingers digging into Annie's cheeks.

She moaned quietly. Spent and exhausted, not that she had much energy anyway. The sex wasn't much different butthe aftermath was.

"You fuckin' slut," Otis hissed in her ear, squeezing at her throat, "Now I'm fuckin' good enough? Well I ain't finished with you , you fuckin' shit stain, by the time I am you'll be wishin' you were dead."

Annie continued to face the wall, gasping for breath till finally Otis released her. Annie spluttered and rested her forhead against the wall. She expected Otis to leave but he stayed in the bed, the coarse materiel of his jeans still brushing on the backs of her legs.

After twenty minutes his arm had dropped to her waist and she was sure he was sleeping.

Annie tried to stay silent when she cried but the jerking of her body was enough for the light sleeper.

"Fuckin' go to sleep," Otis growled, biting down on her shoulder, "The fuck do you have to cry about anyway?"  
Annie didn't mind the biting. It was determining whether if it was the affection he had shown her in bed before, or if it was another way to mark her as his. Maybe it was both.

"I'm going to die here," She whimpered between sobs.

Otis wrapped his arm around her small waist and drew her to his body. Taller, he nestled his face in her mass of chocolate hair and smiled.

"You're going to die here," He agreed.


	7. Chapter 7

_Past_

After last night, Otis had moved her. Annie was now situated in a holding cell full of discarded clothes, some blood stained, some not, and she was dressed in a blue, Halloween dress. The metal cage overlooked a bed and TV, usually it was Tiny who was sat on it messily eating cereal. Every so often the giant man would lumber over and push some food or water her way. She was grateful for that.

Clearly Otis hadn't been pleased when he woke up next to her, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. It was one of those rare times in which the body he woke up next to was warm and it was breathing and he was not happy about that. It meant he hadn't killed her yet.

Baby sometimes came down and chatted to her. Granted the conversation was either about sex or murder, but it kept her from going insane. The lithe blonde usually came down to throw more shoes or clothes on the pile and occasionally take some of the garments that were already there.

"Otis has taken a real shine to you," Baby drawled, pinching Annie's cheeks, her face was still pink from the stained blood, "He usually finishes his art in a day, or sends 'em down to meet Satan!"

Baby cackled, giving Annie a couple of love taps before skipping away. Taking great care to lock Annie in as she left, cackling before handing the key to Tiny.

After Tiny had finished his cereal he packed up his things and left. Abandoning Annie in the darkened room, the only light coming from a small cellar window that looked out onto the dirt driveway. Annie began making a bed out of the discarded clothes, trying to use the least blood stained and avoiding the foul smelling trousers. Just as she was about to settle down into a restless sleep full of horrific dreams she heard footsteps on the stone stairs.

"Am I interrupting your fuckin' beauty sleep princess?!" Otis demanded as he stormed into the room, throwing himself at the wire cage and rattling it loudly.

Annie scooted into the corner, drawing her knees up to her chest.

Otis produced a gun and poked it through the large squares of the wire cage, in line with Annie's head.

"Play time's over," He growled.

Something snapped inside Annie. She would be a partner in crime, she would be a pairing, an equal but she would never ever be a victim. She stood up, her legs apart and her shoulders drawn back.

"You shoot Otis. You shoot and you kill me," She dared him, strolling up to the cage so that the gun was a millimeter away from her chest.

"I wouldn't want it to be over too quick, mama,"

When Annie started to laugh, started to laugh so fucking hard that tears streamed down her cheeks, he threw his arms against the cage. Creating a metallic reverb that made her jump and step back but not stop laughing.

"Why?!" She cried, "I am askin' you to kill me, so why the fuck not?"

"Because I've spent ten years wishin' all these girls were you. You are responsible for them, I've spent night after night cutting up itty bitty Malibu barbie bitches and havin' my fun when they're done out. An' every 'please mister, I swear I won't tell no one' has done no good because Annie-Mae you taught me somethin'. You taught me that our bodies come and go but this blood is forever and I had to break away from the conformity of the masses because what else was fuckin' pale, no good, fuckin' hick, FREAK, gonna do otherwise,"

The color drained from Annie's face and she felt a single tear trace a path down her face. She always knew about him but now she knew it was her that was robbed him of his last shred of sanity.

"Otis, I knew you for who you were. I loved you for who you were. I never tried to change you,"

"You shut your fuckin' mouth!" Otis slammed himself against the cage again and Annie flinched but the wire seemed to act as a buffer and she continued trying to wear the maniac down.

"That was never me! It was my Ma, Otis, you gotta know that by now. It was never me,"

Otis paced. Up and down. His finger tightly pressed against the gun's trigger. His breathing was so incredibly rapid that it could almost be classed as hyperventilating.

"Fuck! Shit! Fuck!" He slammed the weapon against his own head and Annie winced at the sound, he noticed and tossed the weapon on the bed.

Things were about to go from bad to worse.

"Otis! Otis!" The buxom lady wobbled down the stone steps until she stumbled into the cellar, her face mottled with fear, she hobbled from one foot to the other. "The cops are outside, they're lookin' for her," She inclined her head towards Annie.

"Fuck, the fuckin' pigs," Otis put a hand on Mother Firefly's back and walked her back up the stairs, "You stay upstairs with Baby, I'll talk to 'em, get Tiny to keep an eye on this bitch,"

"Otis, play nice," Mother Firefly warned.

"Don't I always?" Otis chuckled to himself before disappearing outside.

Annie stayed standing, gripping the wire fence, staring wildly around at the bare room. Twenty minutes later, Tiny came downstairs and sat on the bed, he switched on the TV and settled in watching that.

"You get the fuck off him motherfucker!" Annie heard a female voice shriek. Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the fence.

"Tiny," She hissed, "Tiny what's going on out there?" She asked.

Tiny, unwilling to miss even a slither of his programme, shambled off the bed and, to her utter astonishment, simply unlocked the holding cell and then limped back to the TV.

Annie felt like crying or dying or both as the door swung open with a metal creak.

"Fuck!" She heard and the sound of a woman yelling, "Motherfucker!"

Annie let her eyes linger over the steps up to outside. Then, she turned to the grimy window. She backed away from Tiny, moving slowly towards the window.

Once there, she wiped at it with the sleeve of her dress before realizing the years worth of grime and sand were on the other side of the box window. Annie began to hear thumping and a sound of choking.

"You stay right there or I shoot his fucking face off! You sick freaks,"

"Tiny, how do I open this?!" Annie asked but Tiny simply shrugged.

Annie let out an exasperated sigh before she caught sight of a latch in the bottom right corner. She tried it, pushing it upwards with the pads of her thumbs but the latch was jammed. Her fingers slipped, coming away from the latch with white and purple intendments on the soft skin.

"Fuck," She whispered, looking around for something to push the lock upwards.

It was then that she spotted the gun lying on the bed. Softly, agonizingly slowly, she moved towards it.

"Tiny...Tiny I'm just going to take this..." She lilted gently, wrapping her fingers around the handle. Tiny lifted his hand, his head completely transfixed on the television despite the screams from outside.

Annie fled back to the window, bludgeoning the latch with the handle of the gun, wedging it under and trying to yank it up. She knew how dangerous it was, how the gun could potentially fire at any second and blow her hand off but she didn't care because she had to open window, she had to see what was going on.

Abruptly the gun flew upwards and with a push the window was cracked open.

Annie was situated away from the action, not close enough for the window to be seen but not so far away that she couldn't see what was happening.

Otis was on his hands and knees, spitting dark blood onto the sand where it congealed in globules. The officer who was delivering the savage beating sent another kick into his ribs which had him spiral to the floor.

"Get up you fuckin' pervert," The cop yelled, stomping down on Otis' spine, making him yell out in agony. Annie's eyes darted for some semblance of help for the man on the floor but the rest of the Firefly family where stuck at the door. The officer had a gun sitting behind Otis' ear, ready to kill him if the Fireflies moved.

"You're killin' my boy!" Mother Firefly screamed, crying and hugging Baby to her.

"Get up!" The officer demanded though as he said it he brought his boot down on Otis' hand, crunching the bones in the fingers. Otis' cowboy hat lay crumpled in the sand, his plaid shirt blew rapidly behind him and when he spat, red spittle was carried away with the wind.

Annie looked down at the gun in her trembling hand. It was just small enough to fit through the gap she had created with the window but Annie was no sharp shooter, though she had used guns before in her life there was still a huge chance she could hit the wrong person.

She heard a strangled, blood gargling, retch and what sounded like vomit.

Annie peaked back through the window, the pistol jammed snugly in between the window frame and the ledge. The cop had one boot on Otis' chest and the gun pressed to his forhead.

Baby was screaming, "You motherfucker!" as Mother Firefly sobbed hysterically and RJ stood behind both of them.

"You don't wanna pull that trigger, Officer Friendly," Otis croaked through a swollen mouthful of blood.

"And why's that?" The officer asked as he cocked the weapon.

That's when Annie fired hers. Twice.

The sound made her ears whine and her vision blur with dizziness, her shoulder ached with the recoil, despite it being small. Immediately she dropped the weapon and headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time before she reached the living room. Disorientated from the gun going off, she spun round, looking for the front door. Suddenly, she found it and saw that it was now empty. Annie sprinted towards it and out the open door, the wind blowing sand around her and the sun feeling like it was cooking her eyes in her head.

Her vision began to come back to her and now she saw two figures on the ground. Her heart was in her mouth until she saw Baby pulling the pale figure from the bottom of the pile and looping his arm around her neck. The officer, the man on top, was still wriggling however. Clutching his hands to his neck and spluttering. In the stark desert scenery she could clearly see the mass amounts of blood pouring from his mouth. Loudly he attempted to suck in breaths but the ugly wound in his neck made wet slapping sounds and the gasping of a dying man.

Annie, dressed in her blue Halloween costume, fled to the wounded man. RJ, who was closer to her than the others stuck out his arm, like a line of steel and caught her; he lifted her up into his meaty arms and held her there, crushing her chest to his own as she kicked her legs.

Mother Firefly however came streaming over, hugging her despite the fact she was mid-air and captive.

"Oh sweetie, you saved him, you saved my boy!" She clasped her hands together and laughed hysterically. "We're gonna be great sweetie, we're gonna be a family!"

Baby had abandoned Otis, who was sure he could hobble back unattended and was now on her knees, her hands deep inside the officer's wound, ripping it deeper.

Annie was turning blue now, RJ was not giving her a chance to breathe at all.

"Alright meat sack, you can drop Sharp Shit Shooter now," Annie was suddenly collapsed on the floor, idly dropped from a 6' 4" height.

She looked up pleadingly and was surprised when she was hauled up by her shoulder and dragged haphazardness along and back inside the house.

"Come on mama, let's clean this shit up,"


	8. Chapter 8

_Past_

Otis bypassed his hysterical family members as he dragged Anna with him by her arm. He waved them away and told them he was fine and that they should go back to whatever they were doing while he dealt with Anna. Then, he went and chastised Tiny for nearly allowing his prize to escape.

Limping across the house and hauling Anna along by her elbow, he made a beeline for the bathroom. He tossed her in and locked the door after her, but the movement of bolting the door made Otis wince as the pain flooded down his bruised and broken fingers.

Annie spun down to the floor which is where she stayed, scrambling away from Otis as she waited for him to do something. Waiting for him to kill her or kiss or or do fucking something but he didn't. He simply looked at his destroyed cowboy hat and swore under his breath, flinging the thing into the corner.

The bathroom was gray and peeling, mold crept in via the damp wallpaper and occasionally a shower of desert sand fell from the ceiling. The toilet looked putrid and the clawed bathtub had a thick, green ring around, mixed with a rusty red coloring.

Otis spat into the sink, red and white spit flecked the basin. He sat down on the edge of the tub, breathing heavily and smiling as he stared at Annie huddled in the corner.

"What're you lookin' at," She asked, angry at what she had done. Angry but strangely not upset, strangely she felt relieved.

"I'm lookin' at you, mama," Otis smirked at her, showing her those crooked, yellowing teeth, "Good to know you can handle two types of barrel,"

He cackled to himself and she scoffed in disgust, feeling like her face was on fire.

"I killed that man," She said quietly, "I killed the only person who was going to save me,"

"Fuckin' good shot too," Otis nodded.

Annie let her head hang as she thought about the atrocity she had committed, she rocked gently in the corner of the bathroom as she contemplate her entrapment and probably eventual death, in this house.

"Don't pull that fuckin' 'I'm so guilty' shit with me, mama. I know ya hands started sweatin' and ya heart started pumpin' and you understood why I am doin' the devils work,"

Otis paused, he knew the rant was mainly for himself since Annie had turned her crumpled face to the wall and instead was staring into that.

Otis sat back, "I do it 'cause it's fuckin' fun,"

Annie looked at him, lazily rolling her head towards the man covered in blood. Ranting through his agony and treating it like some divine blessing, Otis leaned forward so he was able to look at her in her big, green eyes.

"That man didn't deserve death," Annie tried, her upset subsiding.

"We all deserve death mama, everyone's gettin' it sooner or later,"

"I just can't believe this, how could I ever choose you," She sobbed into her chest.

Otis clapped his large calloused hand, causing Anna to look up and raise an eyebrow at him.

"You're a Firefly baby, as much of a Firefly as I want you to be," The man was covered in blood and his insane chortling almost made her laugh but when she heard Baby laughing downstairs and the sound of a hacksaw working away, it brought her back to reality.

"This place is hell," She informed him and wasn't surprised when he stood, wobbling a bit from his wounds but towering over her all the same, a force to be reckoned with. His shadow covered her and she shrank under it, lulling against the door.

"This place is a fuckin' five star Beverly fuckin' hills beach house, honey" he bent down and pulled her closer to him by the collar of her dress, "but if you want hell, I can show you hell,"

Otis waited for the begging and crying and pleading but they didn't come. Annie pried him off of her and slumped back against the door, a look of languid boredom on her face, she was simply unfazed.

"Jesus Christ, fuck it," He waved her off and turned away, deliberating whether it would worthwhile in tying her up and gagging her again but he decided after her being the martyr there were nothing else he would gain from her., yet he still couldn't kill her.

Instead he opted to attend to his had leaked through his shirt and though it was ripped to begin with it now hung off him in tatters. He was sure his nose was broken as he wiped the dried blood caking his nostrils and heard an unhealthy crunch, but that would right itself eventually into another unsightly area of his face. His lip and eyebrow were split, the punches that had rained down on him had been wearing rings; he spat again in the bath and took off his shirt. Reaching under the tub he pulled out an old roll of filthy bandage that he wrapped around his naked waist.

"You need to clean that first," Annie swallowed, scrambling up to a kneeling position, "Here let me,"

"Fuck you!" Otis snapped but Annie persisted. "You ain't the only one here whose ever taken a beatin' Otis B. Driftwood!"

"Fuck you," Otis said but this time he sat on the edge of the tub and allowed her to take the bandage away. Instead, she created two strips, one to clean and wipe the scratches and another to wrap it up.

"Your Old Lady?" Otis asked in reference to her beating and Annie laughed, shaking her head."No...her pimp,"

Otis had known for a while that Annie's mother had been a working woman, but he had no idea that she was being effected by it.

"RJ picked you up on the side of the road mama, what were ya doin' there? The fuckin' funky chicken?"

"I was workin'" Anna hissed, purposely roughing up her medicare so that Otis winced in sharp pain. "That gon' be a problem?"

Otis laughed and shook his head, "I knew you fucked like you charged for it,"

Annie tightened the badadge, hard.

Otis grabbed her wrist as a warning, pulling her to him and staring down at her.

"And what happened to Mother Gunner," Otis pressed. Though he already knew. But he wanted to hear her say it. He wanted to hear her.

"She not around anymore," She looked at him when she said it, noticing that his grip on her wrist was getting tighter the longer she left the conversation hanging.

"I bet her pimp ain't around either," Otis grinner, his free hand sliding down her waist and resting at her hip, leaving a long trail of black blood down the soft blue cloth.

"No...he's not..."

"And why's that, mama," When Annie didn't reply Otis violently walked forward until her back was shoved hard against the door, crushing her wrist with bruising strength, "Why ain't he steppin' his ass up to the Gunner house no more?"

"Because I killed them both," Annie gasped.

Otis pushed his face against hers and pinned her arms high above her head.

Annie kissed him back while a single tear ran down her face.


	9. Chapter 9

_Past_

After finally making it up off of the bathroom floor Otis took Annie back to bed, she was exhausted physically and mentally and so he left her to dramatically cry from the 'guilt' of her killings, alone. Otis couldn't be bothered dealing with that side of anyone right now, though he had been through it with Tiny and he even found Baby trembling quietly after she had lost it and murdered one of her friends. Otis had finished with his parents when he was thirteen and though he had felt no remorse, the senseless sadism was only ingrained into him after his third or fourth stab at it.

Annie would need training but the knowledge that she had the rage in her, and the willingness to protect him, meant that she would be pliable under his watch.

Otis went back the work, smiling gently at the fact Annie had cried herself to sleep when, just behind a dirty curtain, sat a man with a gag in his mouth, passed out from pain. Otis wasn't sure if the man was dead or not, despite the fact that him and Baby had cut off both his arms a couple nights ago, he still seemed pretty fresh. Now, Otis was fashioning wings from a sharp line of coat hanger, PVA glue and a sack full of feathers. He worked until his last candle extinguished itself, disappearing down the holder in a puff of wisping smoke. Then, he walked back through to watch Annie sleeping, making circular intendments on a wooden side table with an ice-pick.

Otis almost smiled as he watched her, muttering sweetly in her sleep, crying like a mewling kitten and he decided that she should be his. It was like the feeling he had when looking at Baby's body, before Mother Firefly threatened to gouge his eyes out with a rusty spoon if he ever touched her Angel Baby, so he didn't and after a while the feeling subsided to a simple 'I don't want to kill you' vibe. No, this was the same feeling but different, but more. Otis sidled up to Annie, shivering under the raggedy blanket he had tossed at her sobbing form, and smashed her head twice against the wall until she passed out. Then, he went to work on her, ice-pick in his hand.

Annie woke up at dusk, a stinging pain radiating over the surface of her forearm. The first thing she noticed was her freedom, she wasn't attached to anything and Otis was apparently nowhere to be seen. Annie sat her, running a hand through her soft, brown hair and winced, her arm was stinging like hell and that was when she noticed the bloody bandage wrapped tightly around it. Her eyes wouldn't leave it, as much as she willed them to, yet she couldn't possibly bring herself to look at what was underneath the wrap. The girl stared around, looking for some form of indication as to what happened last night. All she spotted was that 'fish boy' had been replaced by what looked like 'bird boy' though disturbingly this didn't phase her. What did phase her however, was the blood that was staining her abdomen, the blanket and the sheet of the bed. Some of the stains were orange and old, but this was bright red and wet though beginning to become pink around the edges.

The panic began to set in hard for Annie at the state of her arm and the fact her head was throbbing by her temple but this soon dissipated when she heard yelling from downstairs and both male and female pleading, she remembered where she was, what had happened and just who she had been having sex with last night. She prayed that Otis wouldn't bring one of the girls back up to his room. Since, although she was monogamous, Annie was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to stick to that agreement.

Annie's life had already fallen apart, but now the pieces were spreading far apart and modeling themselves into something new, something entirely clean to her but with an age worth of filth already attached toit. She realized this as she lay back down, listening to the panoply of cries in the rooms below her and found herself wishing that Otis, Baby, someone would come and talk to her. She couldn't even remember what day it was, let alone how long she had been there.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps on the stairs,heavy and taking them two at a time then door burst open with an expected, though still frightening, slam.

"Happy Halloween, mama!" Otis yodeled at her as he slammed a sack over her head.

Pitch black, Annie panicked, thrashing as Otis pulled her arms behind her, yanked her off the bed and began to guide her across the house. Annie mumbled against the bag and shrieked as Otis swept her off her feet, avoiding the awkwardness of maneuvering her down the stairs.

Finally, when she was on stable ground once again, Otis pulled the sack from her head. Annie shrank back against what felt like burning halogen lights though it was only some dimmed lamps and a multitude of candles.

Otis pushed her forward lightly and she stumbled into the large arms of Mother Firefly.

"Meet the family," Otis sneered, though his voice was muffled.

Annie turned, and screamed.

Otis was wearing someone else's skin. Mother Firefly cackled and gingerly stroked Annie's soft hair, cooing into her ear. "Don't worry honey, Otis ain't really one for dressin' up in bed,"

This caused Baby and Mother Firefly to burst into raucous laughter not even stopping when Otis attempted to hush them.

"Alright, alright," He drawled lightly, "Shut the fuck up now,"

Annie relaxed back into Mother Firefly's warm body and allowed maternal arms to be wrapped around her.

"Annie-Mae, this is Mother Firefly, Baby-"

"Angel Baby!" Mother Firefly corrected him and he flipped her off.

"Angel Baby, you've met RJ and the ever watchful Tiny," Otis, again, flipped off Tiny, who shrugged, "The ol' bastard's watchin' TV somewhere,"

Annie nodded tolerantly at the introduction, though she was familiar with all the name's and faces. More importantly, she had clocked the three strangers that were tied up to the chandelier, whimpering and twirling like some perturb Christmas decorations.

"Come, come!" Baby yipped, grabbing Annie's hand and diverting her attention from the trapped victims, "Let's go dress you up!"

Baby was running her fingers through Annie's hair, over her sharp cheeks and almost sticking them inside of her mouth, tracing her lips and imagining how exactly she was going to make-up her new doll.

Annie, sparing a last look at Otis, was dragged away by Baby with the promise she would be made to look 'bitchin'.

The last thing she heard was Otis singing.

"I'm the one who brings the Christmas candy. Now tell me, whose your Daddy?"


	10. Chapter 10

_Past_

Annie wasn't sure what she meant to be. Some kind of swirling mass of white material that was almost identical to whatever the hell Baby was supposed to be. Annie pulled on the hem of her dress, straightening it out and letting the thick white cloth hit the floor. Baby had thrown a shawl around her shoulders made of white lace, the kimono had long draped, bat wing sleeves that wrapped around Annie's waist when she moved, she kept catching them on things.

"It's pretty hot in here Baby," Annie mumbled with caution, "I'm not sure I'll need this,"

Annie shrugged and the shawl fell down, revealing tanned shoulders but Baby was quick to lightly tap her face and hoist the shawl back up, pulling it tight around Annie.

"No silly," She shrieked with laughter, "But it gets real chilly where we're goin'"

Annie swallowed and allowed herself to be politely guided back into the living room where Otis was waiting for her.

Otis was dressed in a long red garb, the collar rising up around his throat which gave him the appearance of a priest. There was something Annie recognised though, and she fought the smile back since you sensed he wouldn't appreciate it. The harrowing make-up he was wearing reminded her of the past.

"Where are my rabbits?!" Baby squealed as she noticed the absence of people, "Otis!"

"Relax," His attention had turned to Annie, Otis circled her now, waving off his sister with the flick of his wrist, "I gave 'em t' Tiny,"

Baby, knowing Tiny's unreliable nature, blanched before running outside to find him.

Annie stood still as she was appraised by Otis, he idly scratched his stomach while he watched her. "Turn," He ordered and she did, making the Grecian dress swirl out around her waist like a school girl.

"You clean up good mama," Otis murmured.

"You do this every Halloween?" Annie asked in reference to the make-up.

Otis smirked and nodded, he had spent many Halloween nights wearing the pattern she had taught him but not once had he spared a thought for the terrifying make-ups origins. "I had to practice it, but I think I got it down,"

She smiled and bobbed her head.

They were both quiet, looking at their respective shoes. The wind outside made the old farm house groan with strain and Anna looked up to check the ceiling wasn't going to cave in. She found Otis staring straight at her, his reddened eyes were narrowed.

"If you even think about backing out," He was stern, honest, "I'll put you in the same hole as the rest of them,"

It wasn't exactly a threat, so much as a caution, a set of rules for her to abide by so that she was aware and she was warned and so she wouldn't accidentality break them and then he could keep her as his own.

"Don't you trust me?"

"I don't fuckin' trust anyone!" Otis snapped, his finger jittering on the trigger of the gun he was holding.

"What about Baby? Mother Firefly?" Annie tried desperately, wanting a further kind of conformation as to why she was being kept alive.

"They're family, you fuckin' whore!" Otis had raised the gun and was using it to emphasize his point, jabbing it at her face.

"And what am I?!" Annie yelled back, the first time she had dared to raise her voice since she had been brought here. In fact, it may have even been the first time she dared to raise her voice to Otis at all. "'Cause I ain't no fuckin' rabbit!"

Otis drew back slightly, the gun lowering from the middle of her forehead to the base of her neck before jolting back to her head. A blue vein began to stand out in Otis' neck.

"It ain't nothin' but nothin', the Firefly's saved my life, I owe 'em"

Annie's eyes opened wide in annoyance and she cocked her head to the side, raising one eyebrow until Otis remembered what had happened a couple of days before.

In denial, Otis shook his head and thrust the gun at Annie once again, realizing he had lost the argument.

"Get out this fuckin' house Annie-Mae," Otis pointed to the front door, about to lead her outside where the rest of the family where waiting, "And you fill your head with kitty cats and puppy dogs while we're out there,"

Otis grabbed hold of the back of Annie's neck and started to lead her out before stopping and grinning his rotten grin at her.

"Ladies first, sugar," He presented the door to her with open arms.

Annie spared him a confused look and walked in front of him, reaching for the handle. The spank on her arse was at such a force it made her yelp and close her eyes.

"Damn mama," Otis laughed before ushering her out into the darkness.

Otis was at the head of the ghoulish Halloween precession, leading the family across the field. Although the 'rabbits' where tied to a long rope and being guided along by RJ and Tiny, Annie didn't feel much better herself. She was wedged in between Baby and Mother Firefly, both where keeping their watchful eyes on her while simultaneously showering their beloved Otis with praise; Grandpa brought up the rear end.

"Alright happy boy, step your ass up," Otis demanded as they stopped next to a well. The well had two coffins next to it and Annie imagined one of those being for her. She couldn't tell anymore.

It wasn't fear or sadness she felt when she witnessed RJ launch the first man into the coffin, her eyes were glued on the second. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she knew, she understood that Otis wanted to keep her forever, that he would never let anyone but himself hurt her, but that she would be his property.

She was nothing more than a glorified rabbit, a prize winner, the best in show.

Otis made a grab for her waist but she slide back before he touched her, prompting him to beckon the next rabbit for slaughter.

No one noticed a tear as it slid down Annie's face, dissolving into her white dress as she played out her imagined goodbyes.

If Otis thought hunting humans was 'nothin' but nothin'' she wanted to see how well he would hunt her.

Annie took off running.

"Fuck!" Otis bellowed as he saw her run, her dress billowing like a ghost as she pumped her arms in a desperate flee, "Fuck! Shit! Fuck!"

He rose his gun and followed her across the field with it but Baby pulled on his arm like a child.

"No, let me get her!" Baby pleaded and Otis shook his head, breaking into a jog.

"Nah, I got her,"

Mother Firefly looked sullen, upset that her affections had been wasted on a plan that had fallen through.

"Alright, you go get her," She hollered after him, a tinge of sadness lining her voice, before turning back and ordering RJ to close the coffin lids.


	11. Chapter 11

_Present_

Otis fell down next to Annie, the blow from the shovel knocking him from his feet in a dazed stupor. Annie-Mae took the opportunity and managed to clamber up, the shovel still clutched in her hands.

It had been raining only for the last ten minutes but Annie was still soaking wet. Her hair clung, dark and splitting against her forehead; her dress was water logged and she knew she wouldn't get far wading in through that much material, there were small rips throughout it where it had been snagged on trees and she had long lost the shawl that was around her shoulders. Annie's arms had been laid bare to the elements but the bloody bandage she had awoken with that morning was still wrapped tightly around her forearm.

"Mother fucker," Annie panicked when she heard his voice, nearly tripping up over her own feet. She thought the blow from the shovel would be enough to know him out cold but clearly not

Groggily, while his head continued to swirl, Otis began to sit up, it was rare he was on the receiving end of such a forceful blow. He looked up at Annie just as she swung the shovel high over her shoulder.

"Woah, woah, woah! Slow the fuck down there, Annie" Otis laughed nervously.

Annie's grip slackened slightly, the head of the shovel arching towards her back, "What did you just call me?"

"Annie," Dismissing the comment briskly, Otis stretched his hand towards her, "Now how about you just give me the shovel, baby and we'll go home,"

Otis made an attempt to get towards Annie but his movement was too jerking and she stepped back, clutching the shovel again. The muscles in her arms looked taut as she gripped the handle tightly in both hands. Otis expected to see fear in her eyes, a rabbit looking at the farmer's gun or at least some form of anger, or even happiness.

Instead he saw unimaginable sadness. Annie was being torn asunder, and her face showed it, her bottom lip trembled.

"You know I can't do that..." She whispered, her voice hoarse.

Annie knew she didn't have much time, soon the family would realize that Otis had been gone too long, and then they would come looking for her. Otis realized it too.

He was the rabbit.

"Come on, mama," He laughed and watched as she gritted her teeth, transferring her weight from one foot to the other and he knew that she was close to cracking. "You ain't gonna kill me,"

Annie shook her head, her tears hung precariously off her cheeks and hit the already wet soil below her. She tried to keep her eye on Otis but her vision was blurred and swimming, though she couldn't wipe her eyes so she just let them streak her cheeks.

"No, I ain't," She agreed before bringing the shovel down her on Otis' head.

"Fuck!" He yelled, shoving his palms up as the blade came down on his head.

Annie jolted at the resistance. Growling, Otis pushed against her and although Annie knew that the shovel wouldn't do much damage even if she won the tussle, since it was too close to his head now. However, she continued pushing down on him, creating resistance between them. Though she wasn't actually creating resistance, she was creating a distraction.

Annie pushed down hard, crying out as her muscles exerting all their strength, she stared down hard at Otis whose arms rippled as he fought against her; he was laughing. That laugh drove Annie insane, her feet were so close to Otis she was surprised he didn't pull them out from under her. Instead, he stared directly at her and continued his maniacal laughter.

Annie-Mae Gunner knew that time was slipping away. Her time was slipping away. Her life was slipping away.

So Annie kicked him in the face.

No, she didn't just kick him in the face, she drove the thick soled shoes Baby had given her into Otis' face. She managed to catch him on the jaw, snapping his face away from her and, like an uppercut to the chin, it knocked him out cold. Otis' hand slackened and Annie almost fell on top of him.

She looked at his body for a total of three minutes. She drank in his closed eyes and the subtle rise and fall of his pale chest, it was as if he was simply sleeping; Annie had never seen him sleep. It had always been him watching her. In that moment, he was harmless. He was the most harmless he had ever been in his life.

Annie went to touch him. She reached out her hand that was not holding to shovel and half knelt towards him, ready to feel his cheek or the curve of his lip. But she pulled back. She pulled back and then she ran.

* * *

When the sun first crept over the horizon, it bathed Annie in a pale golden light. She had spent a terrifying night in the bushes, crying involuntary tears of tension and fear, waiting to be hauled from her hiding place and dissected. So when the sun rose and she still hadn't been caught, she decided to make a move.

The shovel was still surgically attached to her hand, no one could pry the only weapon she had from her, no one. Annie decided it was time for her to make a break for the road. She had run all night so she assumed she was mildly far away from the Firefly house and now, she was distancing herself even further as she made her way down the winding paths.

There were wet tracks that ran down her face, they had cut through desert sand, blood and dirt to leave stains down her cheeks. Annie had ripped her clothes, discarding the wet materiel from last night, despite the fact it would be dry now. At least she could move freely now, run faster but the downside was she had now exposed her arms and legs to the elements...and anything the Firefly's had planned to try and catch her.

Annie jogged her way down to the road, the sun beating hotly on her neck and head, sweat pouring from her face. She stopped by the side of the road, staring left and right.

She knew she was a sitting duck but she was disorientated, and she had no idea which way to go in order to distance herself from her captors.

When the red pick-up truck appeared on the right hand side of the road, sweeping lazily over the hill, swimming through the heat wave visible on the road, Annie almost fainted.

Instead, she waved her arms high above her head, tottering dazed in a circle as she tried to keep herself from falling over.

"Help," She asked, her voice hoarse and tired and disturbed and so, so weak.

The car was still coming, and faster now down the hill.

Annie walked out into the road, "Help me,"

Her vision was fading, blacking out against everything she had worked so hard for. The screech of tires corrected her vision and she saw the red truck stop just before hitting her.

A man got out first, Annie heard the slam of the side door but not what he was saying to her. He was followed by an older woman, around forty, hysterically crying but her words were gibberish.

Annie crumbled and allowed herself to be caught by the man and lifted into the back of the truck. He propped her up against the back of the car, both of them agreeing that the air might do her good on the ride to the hospital.

The irony of her once again accepting a ride from strangers to escape the situation she had gotten herself into by doing exactly that would strike her much later.

For now, as she heard the doors slam and the roar of an engine, Annie sat propped against the car in the pick-up truck. Her head lolled onto her chest but she couldn't rest, she couldn't do anything.

The car raced along, much faster than the speed limit allowed and Annie watched the road shrink before her. The nightmare was shrinking too, becoming tiny, minuscule and just a distant dream. The baron wasteland, the trees, the hill, it was all disappearing, it was all almost gone.

Almost.

As the car took her away, Annie glimpsed a figure appear at the top of the road. Wearing a plaid shirt and a cowboy hat, sliver hair blowing carefully in the wind, sniper rifle pressed to his eye. It was pointed at her.

Annie couldn't breathe, the fight had left her and though her lips parted slightly in surprise, she did nothing. She waited for the bullet the enter her head and blow out the back of her skull.

She waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And then, the figure lowered his weapon, and was gone.


	12. Chapter 12

_Present _

Annie spent a long time in the hospital. After the initial commotion of her arrival, Annie was placed in a bed and issued a therapist, which she denied to talk to. Mainly she slept and the doctors, seeing no immediate trauma on her, let her. After a day of rest that closely resembled a coma to anyone who didn't know what she had been through, Annie was awoken by a nurse tugging at her arm.

Annie flicked around, darting from her light sleep, and grabbed the nurses wrist as it fiddled with the bandage on her forearm.

"No!" Annie cried out, unknowingly gripping the woman's arm so hard that she was leaving half moon nail prints in her skin.

The nurse, young, probably new in the building, laughed nervously. "Sorry for waking you miss but I just need to-"

"No," Annie repeated, her hair wild and her eyes staring, she feverishly shook her head "Not 'til I'm ready,"

The bandage was so grimy now that Annie could feel grains of sand scratching her, trapped underneath the bloody wrappings, but she wasn't ready to unearth what was under there just yet, she didn't know when she would be.

"Miss Gunner, I need to place your IV's," The nurses voice was quiet, not yet experienced enough to know that if she was forceful enough, she could easily get her way. It was one of those professions where the customer was rarely right.

"I ain't gonna let you do that," Annie told her, gently pushing the woman's hand away, "I'm sorry,"

The nurse nodded, obviously planning on leaving to grab a doctor, but instead re-filled Annie's water and allowed her to get to sleep.

An hour later the police came to question her on her abduction. Big men in big, black blazers who acted like it was her who was in the wrong.

Annie acted aloof, annoyed at their rude treatment of her plight. She told them she didn't remember anything. That all she could recall was getting into a car, though she said it was a white Volvo, and then nothing until her run in with the Blacks (her eventual rescuers). The police thanked her for her time and promised her they would get to the bottom of it, but she knew that they never would.

After two days in hospital, it was time for Annie to return home.

* * *

_Two Years Later_

The Blacks were kind enough to let Annie stay with them for a few months after the incident. They felt bad when she told them of her profession and the absence of a mother and father in her life. Jackie, a literature teacher, and Derrick, an IT technician, never asked her about what happened to her; they treated her like their own child. They found her a job as a waitress and once she had saved up enough money, she moved out to a place of her own. Annie didn't move to far away and the couple came to visit her often enough, bringing bottles of wine and wall hangings that they wanted her to have.

There was no way she could ever explain how grateful she was for them, for the contact that they continued to give her. It was a pure love, born probably out of guilt, but a love that she had never experienced before.

Annie was pretty broken for the first month of her returning home, there were multiple men, a incident with drugs and a pregnancy. Annie terminated it. She could never be sure who it belonged it.

But with the help of Jackie and Derrick, Annie repaired her life and she managed, slowly, to repair herself too. She had plans to move far away from Texas as soon as she could and had decided that she wanted to become a writer, find somewhere quiet to write her novel and potentially spend the rest of her life there, alone. All she wanted for the rest of her life was quiet, was nothing important, was banality.

It was rare that Annie thought about Otis, but she would be lying if she said he never crossed her mind. Sometimes, she would dream that he was next to her in her bed, her back pressed solidly against his chest, her paint on her face. Sometimes she would dream she was in his bed, back in the house, and she would wake up screaming.

In the shower, the bandage she had kept on her wrist came off. Annie had thrown up when she saw what was under it, fallen to the floor of the shower and sobbed, but now she realized it was a part of her.

She would never be able to clearly recollect what happened that day, and she tried to put it from her mind, but often it crept up from unlikely stimulus. Annie wondered, was it ever at all possible that Otis allowed her to escape? Or was it simply that she was too far away, the shot too risky to take and one day, he would come back for her? Annie often shuddered at the thought.

Two years after her original capture, in the month of July, Annie turned on her TV.

As she watched the news, the things that had been discovered she moved from her couch, to inches away from the television, aggressively biting her fingernails. She sat there for hours upon hours, drinking in everything that happened until the Firefly get away car came to a stop.

Annie continued to watch, Otis in the driver's seat, speeding down the road towards the blockade made by the police and she was crying. Not sobbing, not even moving, but she was still crying because she knew she would always be his and that she loved him; as much as she didn't want to.

Annie-Mae Gunner watched on live television as Otis B. Driftwood was shot to death. Then she lowered her head, wiped her tears, and switched off the television.

It took her a long time to move, to do anything, but when she did she looked down at her forearm. Annie gazed at what was written there, what had been gauged into her arm with an ice-pick while she was unconscious.

Annie would always be his, she would always belong to and be a part of the Firefly family. She read the word carved on her arm, each letter scratched out and healed in shaking, white, scar tissue. It read one word.

That word was: _Otis_.

**_The End._**


	13. Chapter 13

**hi everyone! Obviously this isn't a chapter but I don't know how else to get out to the people who read this story otherwise. Anyway, thanks for reading my fanfic as awful as it may be, if anyone wants to review I would totally be up for this (not hinting at all there...except I totally am) Also, I'm taking requests so if anyone has some ideas they want realised and aren't writers, I'd be happy to give them a go.**

**thanks so much for reading and I hope to hear from you all!**

**p.s I'm drunk**


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